Editor's note: This story is part of the WardsAuto digital archive, which may include content that was first published in print, or in different web layouts.
Special Coverage
New York Int’l Auto Show
NEW YORK – Bentleys usually come in subdued colors, but a bright yellow one takes the stage during a debut here at the New York International Auto Show.
It is a 4-seat convertible version of the Continental Supersports, billed as the fastest vehicle ever from Bentley Motors Ltd., the 91-year-old British icon of ultra-luxury car making.
The Supersports’ 6.0L twin-turbo W-12 engine puts out 621 hp with 570 lb.-ft. (800 Nm) of torque. Bentley touts its top speed as 202 mph (325 km), with a 0-60 mph (97 km/h) time of 3.9 seconds.
Produced in Crewe, U.K., the new drop-top addition to the auto maker’s 14-model lineup goes on sale in October, says Christophe Georges, president and chief operating officer of Bentley Motors Inc.
He tells Ward’s there’s a definite market for the new car, but declines to speculate how many Bentley expects to sell. The Supersports convertible’s base price is $280,400 – relatively inexpensive for a Bentley.
After setting some sales records, the Volkswagen AG-owned auto maker had a sobering 2009, with 4,616 global deliveries, off 49% in the U.S. and down 39% worldwide, compared with 2008. Bentley sold more than 10,000 vehicles during its peak sales year of 2007.
A bright spot last year was the introduction of the flagship Mulsanne, Bentley CEO Josef-Franz Paefgen says.
That hand-built, low-volume car has been a hit with the rich. “Anyone not on a waiting list for a Mulsanne will have to wait well into 2011,” he says.
